In this pit I pulled you out of,
I feel sadness clawing away at my paper thin heart,
Making itself a new home.

I am stuck down here,
and I see you, high above,
like a dove on a lamp post,
too tall to touch.

You have two beautiful eyes.

The left one, me and everyone sees.
The right one, I cannot see,
but I know it is there,
and I am sure it is golden.

Why do you hide it from me?
What is it you see,
so far away from me,
that you can't turn simply,
and love me completely?

I love the icing you serve,
but I cannot live without food.
I will starve.
I must leave soon, for awhile,
and later, for eternity.

How can I know a coin
if I cannot see both sides?

Remember me,
dame,
Treachery,
in fame.

In the crowd of the strong, I find my weakness.
And I know deep down I cannot escape,
This very sad and sorry pit I am in,
Underneath a wretched death's drape.

Stephen J. Hartfield, 18, won first place in teen poetry for those ages 15 to 18. A graduate of Mattawan High School, Stephen now attends Kalamazoo Valley Community College where he is majoring in journalism. His parents are Fred and Debbie Hartfield.